Game Over
by XNobodyXSomebodyX
Summary: Gamer love is true love. Roxas is a recluse and a gamer, all he cares about is where the next platinum trophy is coming from and who is threatening his position on the leaderboards in Halo. He cared nothing for the outside world, that includes Sora. Sora is not easy to deter however. Sora/Roxas
1. Well Laid Plans Require Patience

_**Something I wrote up a while back, originally it was meant to be longer, I had wanted it to be a short series of oneshots that would eventually lead them to falling in love... Might still do that actually, but for now this is all it is going to be. I don't have enough free time to guarantee anything.**_

_**Either way, hope you enjoy it, tell me your thoughts on it, they would be greatly appreciated. I know the ending is rather abrupt, like I said I had originally meant for it to be a series of shorts, so the end is more like a flashforward of sorts.**_

* * *

**_Game Over_**

* * *

:: Well Laid Plans Require Patience ::

* * *

He had one love, one passion, in this world. It was quite simple really, easy to fulfill, simple to follow, there was nothing to complicate it and nothing that would really get in his way of it.

Gaming.

It was all he did, it was all he needed. He didn't have friends, or at least none that aren't strictly talked to through a headset. He didn't have much of a family, no one to nag him out of his apartment. He didn't have a job either, he lead the life of an orphan with an impressive inheritance. It was a simple life, an empty life, but he didn't need a complicated one, he felt more alive in his video games than he ever did in real life.

It was boring.

Call it his lack of ability to focus on any one thing for longer than ten minutes, but he simply found day to day life too mundane and vanilla for his tastes. It needed a good mod, but no one could really do that, now could they? The one game that can't be hacked. The biggest disappointment in his opinion. But his opinion didn't really matter in the end, he supposed, no one really cared for his opinion and so his opinion did not really matter. He would just continue to sit in the dark and guard his position at the top of the leaderboards, there was this one guy who was always much too close to passing him in Halo. It was more important to him anyways, he didn't really care what happened in the outside world as long as it didn't interfere with his life.

If you could call it a life.

He didn't need it.

It was a pain in the ass to do anything outside of his own home anyways, and last time he checked, having a life mainly constituted having a social life, and that would involve leaving his home. Which he didn't do. Ever. God forbid there was ever a fire, because he was sure he would burn to death, he simple was not ready for the outside world. It wasn't a fear or anxiety that kept himself inside either, he simply just did not want to leave, he saw no reason to.

There was nothing for him out there.

Of course there would come the day that change would take place. It was inevitable, and he wasn't naïve enough to not expect it, but that didn't mean he would have to accept it so willingly. He had a neighbor, across the hall from himself, there were only four apartments on his floor but the one across from himself was the only one that was actually important because it was the only one that had a person in it that he considered worth his time. She was a young woman, very sweet, loved flowers, by the name of Aerith Gainsborough.

She died.

Her funeral was the only reason he had left his apartment for longer than five minutes in over six months. He did not enjoy the time out, he did not enjoy the event, he did not enjoy the experience all in all. And people wonder why he never leaves his apartment, nothing good ever happens when he does enter the outside world. Either way, the point of bringing her up in the first place was that her apartment had become available. He had considered taking it himself, he couldn't imagine seeing someone else living in it, but at the same time he felt it was too wrong to let that apartment sit empty. And he definitely couldn't live in it himself, he would ultimately change it, and he couldn't bear to see himself erasing her existence.

Not that it mattered.

Her relatives, or at least the few friends she had that had acted like her family, came and took care of her things, a man named Cloud and a woman, Tifa. They had brought a little girl with them too, Marlene, she looked nearly identical to Aerith… He was still unsure how he felt about that. But eventually they also left, their departure he had welcomed more readily, and that apartment was empty. It felt wrong to see it so bare, but it was what had to happen. It would happen to his one day too. And eventually someone else would fill it, replace him.

He didn't like that.

The new tenant arrived sooner than he liked, quicker than he appreciated. Hadn't anyone ever heard of a grieving period? Or did no one think that the neighbor would need some time to grieve in the first place? Either way, the new tenant moved in and he found himself having to just deal with it. Except, of course, real life didn't just want to be simple. No, no, he couldn't just be left in his apartment to grieve quietly, no, the new neighbor had to harass him.

Or something like that.

It started with a knock at his door. He had heard the neighbor moving in the previous day, an obnoxious person, loud voice that seemed to fill rooms, his friends were much quieter. He wished one of them had been the ones to move in. He, of course, did not answer. He knew it wasn't important, and he had been in the middle of Halo. If it were his landlord, she would have called him, but she had no reason to contact him anyways, because he paid his rent regularly and always right on time, and he never had any complaints. And it was a Saturday, so it wasn't his groceries being delivered, that was usually on Monday.

So he didn't answer.

The new neighbor moved on to the other two tenants on the floor, knocked on their doors, chatted them up. He seemed like the friendly sort. He disliked it. Again on Sunday, he knocked on his door, and he didn't answer, and then he heard him move on to the other two tenants on their floor. Monday came though, and as he waited for his groceries to be delivered he heard the usual knock. He answered this time, expecting to see the new neighbor and tell him to leave him be, since he had the time, what with waiting for his delivery, but he was surprised to see the delivery had been early. So he looked it over as per usual and signed for it, pulling out a couple dollars to tip the delivery man when the door across the hall opened.

This was the moment that everything changed.

Sky blue eyes widened in impossible excitement, a tanned man barely any older than himself jumping forward out of his apartment like there was a fire. It took him much too long to realize what was happening as a tumble of words spilled from the new neighbor and he was suddenly carrying his groceries into his apartment.

Not good.

He found his way to the kitchen much too easily, not like their apartments were all that different, the layouts were likely very similar, but it was still just wrong to see someone walking around his own home. He tipped generously and shut the door in the delivery man's face, spinning around to rush to his kitchen to see the new neighbor looking through his groceries and babbling incessantly. The first thing that popped into his head was to threaten to call the police if he didn't leave, and all he got for a response was a joyous laugh.

He didn't get it.

There was more babbling, this neighbor was just in such a good mood, but he was slowly putting him into a more and more sour mood. This stranger was in his home, no one ever was in his home, not even the landlord had been in here since he moved in. No family, no friends, no one. Who was this guy to think he could just grab someone's food and walk in their homes? He grabbed his phone, moving to dial 911, but the neighbor just snatched it out of his hands and commented on his iPhone's wallpaper…

_That was when he snapped._

"Get out!"

"You know, I've been waiting to talk to you, I'm pretty sure you're the last person in this building I haven't met. They said you never leave your room, but I knew that couldn't be true. Everyone has to leave at some point, I just hadn't expected it to take so long, I mean two whole days. I didn't even hear you moving around in here, no talking or anything, if it weren't for the sounds of your TV I would have thought you were dead! You're really quiet, you know that?"

"Don't touch that! Stop!"

"I figured that since we live across the hall from each other that we'll need to get to know each other better, you know, become best buds and all that. I see you like Halo, that's cool, I play some myself, but that's no big deal. You wanna exchange GamerTag's, play a game together? If not I can just watch, like watching a movie sorta, except it's funnier when people mess up."

"I don't mess up! You need to leave! I will call the cops!"

"No you won't, I got your phone. Isn't that kinda unrealistic that you don't mess up, I mean no one's perfect, you must make a mistake every once and a while. Oooh! Can I try? I want to play! Do you mind? I mean, we are buds but it would be just rude to not ask before grabbing the controller and everything, isn't that like gamer etiquette or something? Like not walking in front of the TV, it would just be rude. Oh, hey, you have a PS3 too! And a WiiU! Is this what you do all day? Oh, nice laptop, are you playing a game on that too? Are you playing two games at the same time?"

"Just leave! I told you not to touch that! Get out!"

"You're becoming quite repetitive, it's kinda dull to talk to you if you're just going to say the same things over and over again. Do you need any help putting the groceries away? Or you hungry? I just made pancakes over at my place, do you want a plate? It's just across the hall, door's open anytime you want to come over, or talk, or hang out. I don't have a job here yet, living off my bank account for now, but it's worth it."

"SHUT UP!"

He suddenly went quiet and turned to look back at him with wide eyes, like he hadn't actually been expecting such a reaction. He just glared at the new neighbor though, nodding towards the door, "I said leave. This isn't your apartment, I didn't let you in, you're not welcome here, so leave."

His new neighbor just seemed to blink at him for a moment, slowly, considerately, then a small much more contained grin crept across his face. Nodding slowly, he began to head towards the door, the other following after him irritably until they reached the threshold. Opening the door slowly, he seemed to rethink leaving for a moment before shaking his head and stepping through the doorway, turning around just in time to hold the door open, before it could be slammed in his face. Staring back at the seemingly swirling ocean blue eyes of his new neighbor, it was all he could do to not scream in his face.

"I just remembered that I didn't introduce myself. I'm Sora, apartment right across the hall."

Glaring at him for another moment longer, he begrudgingly grunted out his own name, "Roxas."

"I know."

And with that, his new neighbor turned around and walked back into his own apartment, leaving Roxas standing there in confusion.

He _knew_?

What, from their neighbors? Probably, maybe, he never really talked to them. He was pretty sure there was a blonde artist chick next door, and a lanky redhead in the apartment across from her. But he had never really talked to them, he had definitely not exchanged names with them. He exchanged names with no one. Maybe the landlord? She wasn't really the type to just give out information to whoever whenever. Who told Sora about him?

… He was probably just over thinking it, to be honest. It was just his name, no big deal. It wasn't like he was hiding out here or anything…

It made his stomach turn though.

* * *

That was how they met. One year later, Sora was dragging the groceries in through the door once again, Roxas frowning at him from the living room as the brunette took it into his own hands to put away all the groceries. Finally, turning around to look at the blonde across the room, he just smiled at him gently.

Walking across the room, he wrapped his arms around the other man's waist, just as gently pecking his lips despite the scowl on his face. Then reached behind himself and pulled the new Final Fantasy from his coat.

The smile was bright, the soft kiss he received in reward much too cute. It was worth the hard work, it was worth moving to a new city, it was worth practically breaking into his apartment day after day. He knew they were going to be together, he knew they were meant to be together, ever since his name passed Sora's on the leaderboards.

In this game, Roxas might get the higher score, but Sora was always the first to win.


	2. You are my Zombie Apocalypse Plan

_**This will probably just end up being an entire series of drabbles. Maybe an outlet for the pent up rage at my own job? If Sora happens to get a job at GameStop, don't be too surprised.**_

_**Anyways, another little drabble thing for this story. Basically this is just kind of like an explanation as to why Sora, being the outgoing guy he is, is okay with Roxas being such a shut-in. And also, we get to see a bit of Sora's more possessive side in this chapter.**_

_**So, reviews are always nice and all that. But honestly if you just follow or favorite the story I appreciate it, it helps to let me know roughly how many people are really interested in all of this.**_

_**Thanks to all of you who did review, favorite, and follow the first part. I don't really have the time or energy to reply but it's very much appreciated.**_

* * *

:: You are my Zombie Apocalypse Plan ::

* * *

It all started on a really hot day in August, the kind of hot where it felt like the air was melting into your skin, and that if you closed your eyes you would suffocate. That kind of hot where you broke out the A/C and all the fans and just hoped the circuit breakers would hold out.

Sora was pretty sure that he was going to die in Roxas' apartment.

In Roxas' apartment, there were three A/C units, about five fans, and this really loud machine that seemed to just make the air feel slightly colder. He also had a large 55" flat screen TV, a PS3, a desktop, and a laptop all turned on and around him, so naturally all the fans were pointed at himself and the machinery.

So that apartment was slightly cooler compared to his own, where he could not afford to get an A/C just yet, but it was still ridiculously hot. Granted, he didn't _need_ to sit in here with Roxas, Naminé was just down the hall and her apartment was always a lovely temperature, but he _wanted_ to be in Roxas' apartment.

Or rather, he _wanted_ to be with Roxas.

Not that Roxas would ever realize that.

So maybe the problem was not with the heat at all, but rather with himself and Roxas? If he could just get Roxas to move elsewhere, like that really cool coffee place right down the street, then they could stay cool and he could be with Roxas. There was one major problem with such an idea though: he never sees Roxas leave the apartment. He would wonder if it was maybe a phobia or mental illness that kept him in, but he got the feeling that Roxas just had no desire to go outside when everything he wanted was in the apartment.

If there was something he did want that was outside the apartment, would he leave?

"Do you ever leave the apartment?"

"No."

"What if you needed to?"

"My apartment has its own emergency fire alarms and sprinklers in addition to the ones wired throughout the entire building, I paid the land lady to do renovations before I moved in to make the entire building up to date on all of the most recent earthquake safety measures, and this area has not had a tornado in fifty years or a hurricane ever."

Sora frowned, this was not starting off well, "I don't mean like an emergency. Like, what if a new game came out and your shipment was lost? Would you go to the store to get a new copy?"

"I order multiples of games, one on each system it is available for," Roxas scrunched up his nose cutely as his character took a shot to the shoulder, "You're distracting me."

"Sorry," Sora shrugged, not really apologetic in any way, "What if it's an exclusive though? Like _Last of Us_, that just came out and it was a PS3 exclusive. If your game had been lost in transit, would you have gone to the store to get it?"

"I wouldn't play that anyways."

"_Last of Us?_ Why? It's a great game!"

A twitchy shrug was his answer for a silent moment before a quick click of the RT button took another virtual life, then a heavy sigh, "Zombies. I was never a fan."

Sora was about to protest that they were infected, but figured that with someone like Roxas, he probably already knew and did his research and just used it to simplify himself for Sora. It was easier and quicker to say "I dislike zombies," rather than "I dislike zombies, and the 'infected' in this game hold too close of a resemblance to zombies for me to be comfortable with." Instead, this raised a different point in Sora's mind.

"Oh… Because in a zombie apocalypse you would either be trapped in your apartment or forced to evacuate."

Roxas' eyebrows came together in a distressed expression, "I have a plan for that."

"Am I a part of it?" Sora grinned slightly, leaning forward and letting the nearby fan blow his hair all to the side, obscuring his vision a little. Only a little though, he caught the slightly embarrassed blush on the other man.

"I rationalize that you have better chances of survival than me due to your skill at shooting from the hip in Halo and COD and Borderlands and-"

"You could just say I'm a better hip shot than you," Sora snorted, grinned brightly at this new information, "But video game simulation doesn't mean real world practice."

"Still a better bet than Naminé picking up arms to run through hordes of zombies to get me Mickey D's."

"I don't think Mickey D's would be open anyways…"

"I didn't say it was a great plan."

Sora shook his head, laughing lightly as he rolled onto his back, looking up at the other man from the floor. The floor was carpeted, so despite it being just as hot as the rest of the room that was not within a 2 foot radius around Roxas it was at least comfortable, "You still haven't answered my question though."

Roxas scowled, rolling his eyes, "I would either wait, buy it off of PSN, Xbox Live, or the Nintendo e-shop, or I would have someone buy it for me from the store and deliver it."

"You mean me, don't you?"

"Or include it in the special instructions of a Domino's pizza delivery," Roxas shrugged.

Sora raised an eyebrow, "You've thought of everything, haven't you?"

Roxas just shrugged, eyes narrowing at the screen of his laptop for a moment, before making a couple selections in the game on the laptop and then turned back to the TV in front of him. Sora stared at him for a moment, then smirked, "What if I told you I would give you my _Legend of Zelda_ 3DS if you went out for coffee with me?"

"I have that already."

"My COD Turtle Beaches?"

"Have it in the closet somewhere."

"My Oblivion and Oathkeeper replica Keyblades?"

Roxas stopped, not just talking, but his fingers stopped on the controller, his eyes shifted and sat on Sora for the longest moment he has ever experienced having the other man's attention, and then he blinked, "You have one? It's not cheap plastic?"

"Full scale, steel, exact replica, and with a signature from Mr. Hearts himself. I hang it on the wall over my headboard… Do you want to see it?"

Another extremely long moment as Roxas seemed to have a war with his inner self, half fighting to see this replica, and half not wanting to leave the apartment at all. Sora was beginning to grow concerned, it was strange enough that Roxas was so opposed to leaving the apartment, but he refused to see it as a phobia or mental illness unless Roxas proved that he only left when he felt it was necessary. If he didn't find this necessary…

"… The same ones from the games and manga?"

"Yep."

"… Mine isn't signed…"

"That's why mine's special—he's only ever signed a handful of them."

Another inner battle seemed to wage itself within Roxas, who finally put the controller aside to really put thought into this offer. His eyebrows were still furrowed together in what Sora considered the cutest bit of frustration when he finally spoke again, "What do you want for them? $200?"

"Go out for coffee with me. Just down the street, half hour to an hour at most."

The lip biting started, it almost made Sora wince at how he chewed on it so nervously, "I'll give you $400… I could just get it offline."

"They're ultra-rare, $500 for just the blades, only the lucky ones got them signed and they are priceless."

Roxas pulled his knees up to his chin as he continued to chew on his lip, "… Just down the street?"

"2 minute walk."

"Half hour?"

"Unless you want to be there longer."

"I won't."

"I like to be optimistic."

They just stared for a little while longer before Roxas finally relented and slowly stood from the chair, unlike Sora who wasted no time in running to the door and opening it for the blonde, pulling the spare key he got from the land lady out of his pocket. Quelling any protests from the other man as he locked the door behind them, he insisted he didn't need a wallet, Sora was paying, and he didn't need to turn off his TV or Xbox, they were on for days at a time, sitting for half an hour wasn't anything new. Sora couldn't help the brightest grin from creeping onto his face as he led the other man out of the apartment building and out onto the street.

It had started so well too, the walk was nice despite the suffocating heat, Roxas stayed rather close to his side the entire way due to his strict avoidance of physical contact with people he was not familiar with. Sora obviously did not mind in the least bit. And actually reaching the shop, he got to stand in line with the other man and order something for him and pay for the drinks _like it was a real date_. He was honestly so ridiculously happy with the entire idea that it was quite bitter when it all started going south.

How did it go south? The coffee guy was gay.

He never really noticed it before, he had recognized the man was attractive, sure, but his mind had been on other sights for quite a while, so he didn't realize that the coffee man was gay until he saw him eyeing up cute, pale, blonde and blue-eyed Roxas… It was only after sipping their iced coffees for about fifteen minutes that Sora realized something monumentally important in his and Roxas' relationship: Roxas liked staying in as much as Sora did.

If Roxas was out, men like the gay coffee guy would start eyeing him up, they would start making moves on him, and honestly Roxas was much too good of a guy for them. Roxas was like the ultimate achievement, like a Platinum trophy in life. Sora didn't want these guys around Roxas, and Roxas didn't want to be breathing the same air as the general public… or the public at all.

With that revelation tucked away for future use, Sora promptly scurried them home and where they took up the exact same positions as before.

That is after Roxas lost his shit over Sora lying about the Oblivion and Oathkeeper blades, he muttered stuff like "the cake is a lie, you know that, Rox," to himself for a week until Sora bought him a giant paopu fruit pillow to make up for it.


	3. Will You Use My Konami Code?

_**This one is a lot shorter than the others, but I like it. Cheating in gaming in something I've always had mixed feelings about, so if anyone tries sending me their opinions on the matter... I'll probably ignore it. I work in a game store guys, trust me, I've heard it all. This chapter is not meant to praise or put down cheating in video games, so don't focus on that. Thank you!**_

_**That being said, I hope you guys enjoy this part. I felt like going back to the way that Sora first met, or really how it lead to their first meeting. Leave a review or favorite or follow if you like, thanks for reading!**_

* * *

_**Will You Use My Konami Code?**_

* * *

It should be fine, if they carry on this way forever. A basic routine, rules, guidelines, boundaries, all established and clear. Nothing left to chance, no risk of pain.

No destruction. No progress.

Sora was never very good at following rules though.

When he had first noticed Roxas, it was in a dungeon of some cheap MMO that he was playing for shits and giggles, he was ridiculously outmatched for the monsters attacking him and was about to be killed and then… Someone just ran in and absolutely destroyed all of them, by himself.

It saved his character, and despite not caring much for the game you don't just forget about those that take special time to help someone else out of a tight spot.

Especially not when you click on their character and realize they're 40 levels higher than you.

Even then though, he only glanced his profile name and typed out a quick thanks message.

It wasn't until he started noticing the man in other games as well, noticing that same profile name popping up, noticing the guy saving his ass or completely obliterating the enemy… No matter where he was or what style the game, it was like he was the perfect AI. He considered it for a while, whether it was actually a computer, but the way he played… He was skill incarnate.

He wanted to be up there with him, to stand on the same ground… No matter what it takes.

* * *

"You're a hacker."

The way Roxas looked at him that day was truly heart breaking. It felt like everything had reset itself, like the power cord was yanked from the wall before the file was saved, like the power went out in the middle of an auto save.

He always said that auto saves would fuck him over.

"N-Not really, I just… use some codes…"

"You're cheating!"

It was the first time Roxas ever put his controller down for him, the first time he let whatever was happening on the screens around him happen without any of his concern. This should have been a satisfying moment, it was something he had been trying to achieve for so long now, but it was giving him a heart attack. With a death grip around his ribs, the blonde just continued to glare at him, as if he expected another excuse from Sora.

Nothing seemed to be forth-coming, though.

"How do you do it? Do you cheat in Halo? Did you cheat to platinum Final Fantasy? Have you actually earned anything?"

"Well how else was I going to get your attention?!" Sora snapped back at him, leaning forward from his spot on the floor, with just the light from the TV in the room, he hoped it was dark enough that Roxas wouldn't recognize he was close to tears. Roxas himself, he looked almost ethereal, yet somehow natural in this light. It only made this situation that much harder to swallow.

For so long he admired the other boy, he watched his gamer score, tracked his trophies, followed him up the leader boards. He was someone born for gaming, someone who belonged to this life, he was… so pure. He wasn't those douche bags at game stores trying to compare gamer scores like the size of the dicks, he played because he loved it and was **really fucking good** at it. His skill was the kind honed from devotion and adoration…

He was someone who deserved the recognition and praise… Whose hands fit around a controller like he was born with it… Who charged into a fight with monsters 20 levels higher than him just for the challenge and not for the rare items.

He was what Sora wanted to be.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Roxas snapped back at him, "You think I would ignore you otherwise? You think I would pay any attention anyways?"

"I didn't realize that until later!"

No matter what game, no matter how he asked, no matter who he pretended to be, Roxas always ignored his messages. He didn't team up with other people. He didn't look for fights against other people. He was there for the game. MMORPG's, shooters, fucking Portal 2 even! He ALWAYS ignored him. If he had realized that Roxas was strictly a solo-er than he would probably not have put so much effort into cheating…

"WHY?"

He flinched slightly at that, looking away from the blonde.

"Why start cheating?! I don't buy it! It's not just about me! What even made you want to cheat to meet me?! Why me?!"

"Because you're great!"

"It's the game that's great!"

Sora's jaw snapped shut, teeth making an awful click from the force, but Roxas wouldn't stop.

"It has nothing to do with me! You just want to be good at the games! When you were playing those games, were you even paying attention to them? Or were you just trying to get another trophy? Did you cry at the end of Final Fantasy X?! What about the Mass Effect series?! How many times have you fought the Seneschal in Dragon's Dogma?! Do you even care about the Grey Wardens?!"

"Of course! I've played them all, I know them!"

"Did you?!"

Roxas was gritting his teeth. The glare was intense. Then he suddenly turned back to his screen, exiting the game was playing and moving to the home screen. He logged out and began creating a new profile.

"Pick a name."

"Huh?" Sora muttered, raising an eyebrow at the blonde, but Roxas just stood from his chair and handed the controller over to the other man.

"You're starting new on my system, since yours is probably modded and can't be trusted. You're going to play ALL of those games again, I don't care how long it takes. I'm going to sit next to you the entire time, you WILL NOT cheat."

It would take a long time, tons of time of just the two sitting together, of only them and the game… It only took him about a month to realize something.

It was never about the games.

They were great, really. But he didn't feel the same attraction to them as he used to.

Sliding down to the floor, he wrapped an arm around the blonde who was silently sobbing over Mordin in Mass Effect 3, bringing the blonde's head down into his shoulder. Weaving his fingers into the light hair, he rubbed his fingers comfortingly into the base of the man's neck. He wouldn't lie, he was pretty torn up about the scene too, but it was seeing Roxas connect in this way, seeing Roxas so passionate about something…

He was a casual gamer at best. Games were never that important to him, cheating was never something truly significant to him, his achievements never meant much… they were all for one purpose. The only reason they became important to him in the first place was Roxas… Roxas was what made gaming special.

Roxas was what was really important.

* * *

3 Months Later

Roxas leaned against the chair, staring at the TV in disappointment, watching the loading screen for the fight against Orphan in Final Fantasy XIII for what must have been the 10th time…

"… You suck."

"Shut up."


End file.
